1. Field of Invention
Apparatuses and methods consistent with the present invention relate to a discharging unit and an image forming apparatus having the same, and more particularly, to a discharging unit capable of reducing the curling, and enhancing the rectilinear property, of a printing medium, and to an image forming apparatus having the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
A discharging unit may discharge various printing media such as, e.g., a standard printing paper, wallpaper, transparencies, glossy photograph paper, or the like, from an image forming apparatus, which forms a visual recording such as a pattern, text, an image on the surface of the printing medium, and may thereby allow the recording medium to exit from the image forming apparatus once the visual recording has been formed thereon.
The image forming apparatus forms the image on the printing medium with developer, e.g., ink, ink ribbon, toner, or the like, and applies heat and/or pressure to the printing medium during the process. During this process, the printing medium may become thermally deformed in the direction of the heat being applied, and may become curled as a result. The printing medium when so curled may interfere, and/or be interfered with, printing medium previously discharged, and may push the already discharged printing medium out of alignment from a neat stack, and may even become jammed within the discharging unit.
Accordingly, it may be desirable to minimize the curling of the printing medium as the same exits from an image forming apparatus.
Japanese Laid Open Patent Application No. 2006-151669 discloses a discharging device including a crossing roller and an elastic roller purportedly to reduce the curling of the printing medium and to enhance the alignment of the discharged printing medium. Although the rectilinear property could be enhanced by the crossing roller disclosed, however, unfortunately, the disclosed structure, since the pair of elastic rollers reciprocally rotate with a predetermined nip, cannot accommodate different thicknesses of the various types of printing medium.